Re: Getting into backpacking, starting to look at gear
on 12/13/2007 17:52:09 MST

Hello Matt! Welcome to BPL!

It's great that you are updating your gear, but what is your goal? Are you trying to lighten up the load? Besides the WM bag, the gear isn't exactly lightweight. How much weight do you plan on carrying? How much stuff will you bring?

Where will you be backpacking? How long do you plan on going out for? Will you be by yourself or with others? Are you planning on hiking for 3 seasons? The gear you picked out is certainly quality gear, but obviously a summerlite isn't going to cut it right now if you're hiking in the White Mountains.

Maybe you don't need a pack that can handle as much weight as the Gregory. Let everyone know more about your goals and habits and the like and then people will be able to help you.

ill be going out just for weekend trips mostly, 3-4days. I am trying to get a light load. Ill be going with friends 3-4 of them. Ill be hiking for 3 seasons, and want gear that'll do for all 3. thanks for the replies.

"Getting in backpacking, starting to look at gear"
on 12/13/2007 19:27:40 MST

Welcome. You have come to the right place. I joined less than a year ago and have learned a lot. I read a lot before I joined this group about going light. So I felt I knew a lot. Nope. Luckily I have 4 kids I can pass the gear that doesn't work for me!!!

I agree with the above person about the GoLite packs. You can't go wrong with a Jam II or a Pinnacle. No question. The Pinnacle is the larger cousin. Though neither have a rigid frame. Read the posts on all of the packs, especially the articles. You may find you will save a lot of money also. Packs like you have chosen are heavy and unnecessary.

Look at the Lafuma line of sleeping bags. Again, more cost effective and very light. I think they are ahead of many of the major manufacturers with some of their light weight gear.

As far as tents go... Either go with a Tarp Tent or single wall like listed above, or try a tarp and Bivy combo. I am using a USMC Gortex bivy because I got it cheap. This is a new thing for me. I have been tarp camping the last year and love it. I have had more beautiful mornings and enjoyed the quiet wild life and even a large hawk flying through the sight where I could here the wings flapping. A fun way to wake up. I will eventually replace that 2 pound bivy with something much lighter, but for now I am loving it. You can buy them on-line for $60.00 if you are careful. As far as a tarp goes read this sight. The Grandma Gatewood Cape is a pretty nice set up and doubles as your rain gear and shelter.

and expand the range of comfortable temperature, consider a quilt instead of the WM sleeping bag. I have a WM Ultralite I like, but I love my Nunatak Quilt.

Tarptents are awesome. I really like the design of the Double Rainbow. It's protective like a tent, available with a liner to help with condensation, yet light and can be set up to catch breezes. (Although I am considering using a tarp next summer.)

Getting in backpacking, starting to look at gear
on 12/13/2007 23:38:28 MST

The Hubba Hubba is a nice tent especially if you divide the weight up with your friend. Make sure you pick up the footprint as well. This will allow you to use the fast fly set up (no tent body, just the fly) which is a bit lighter/smaller to pack and also gives you a pretty good idea as to whether or not you would like to move up to a tarp.

hey matt, i hope you have fun getting out! reading the forums will give you a ton of good info, and keep in mind that your backpacking style will constantly evolve and be swayed by new techniques that you learn and by all the great new gear the keeps coming out. i use a golite pinnacle about half the year, which works very well for all seasons here in the southeast. it holds everything well and has plenty of room. a friend has a jam2 pack and has trouble fitting everything on a 4+ day trip comfortably and he's pretty trim with his bag contents (except food which is probably the issue). the pinnacle is a bit more flexible than the jam2 and is worth the extra bucks to get 33% more space. but there are a few things i'd like to do to my pinnacle, like some more outer pockets and loops and a few structural issues, but most of that stuff has been well covered in the reviews. everyone else has listed some really good bags too and you should check out what you think will be right for you. just make sure it looks like it will be comfortable with well padded shoulder pads and a decent hip belt. i had to sew some foam into my hipbelt on the pinnacle, so be prepared to modify your gear to get it just right. you've definetly come to the right place, so listen the oldtimers and you'll be great.

I have the Hubba Hubba and love it, but I use it basically for a one person luxury tent on non-backpacking trips with my son's scout troop. Great tent, but you can go lighter with a little more study. I've become quite fond of my HH Hyperlite hammock set up, but that's a different discussion.

When you say you are redoing your and that these three things are "what you've come up with so far", do you mean you plan to revisit other gear items you carry? If so I strongly suggest you postpone the backpack purchase until you are through with everything else. I have spent the last year going through everything I carry, and I'm very very grateful someone here gave me that advice. Otherwise you can end up with a pack with too much volume or is designed to carry too much weight.

If your goal is to get as light as you can, given a certain level of comfort, while spending a certain level of cash, you cannot afford to end up regretting many purchases - certainly not significant ones. This site has helped me tremendously to make wise decisions, find some great deals along the way, and to rethink what I really need to carry. All my gear is purchased (I know you can't ever really be through, that would take some of the fun out of things!), and when Santa brings my ULA Conduit I'll be just under a nine pound base weight even though I'm carrying a relatively heavy (by UL standards)two quilt hammock set up, but that's part of my "given level of comfort". Hope this helps.

I too recommend holding off on the Backpack until EVERYTHING else is purchased! You might buy 4 pound backpack that is designed to hold 50 lbs of gear, but your final gear, food and water weight may be 20/30 lbs or less... or the exact opposite.

Also, gear volume is something to consider too. I have a 10 lb base weight, but the volume of my gear is farely large. I cannot fit everything for a weekend into a 20 litre pack, unless I compress everything past an acceptable limit. So I take a 35 liter pack for weekends. This works for me for volume, but my total pack weight is still below 15 lbs.

So, buy all of the gear in your budget. Weigh it. Then put it all together in a big sack (pillowcases, trashbag, etc) and then take it to a gear outfitter to actually fit it into a pack. Then choose the pack that is in your budget and feels good on your shoulders and consience!

AS for pack Choice, If its been mentioned, but I havent seen it, Look into ULA. I had a Circut and loved it (I gave it too my dad so I could get SMD Comet...but anyway) ULA's Catylst and Circut are good packs for those with higher base weights than 10 lbs (Like me). Brian also makes his packs out of Dyneema, which is why I switched over from Granite Gear. Good Luck and happy trails.